How to Build a Brand for SaaS SME Startups

Are you a first-time software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup or a serial entrepreneur? Either way, a market strategy is a must.

If you’re a tiny firm, you’ll be facing considerable competition. Unquestionably, a well-known and loved brand identity is a company’s most important asset.

Unfortunately, most SaaS founders do not consider branding when developing their products.

The belief is that when they build a decent product, buyers will come on their own. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. Even the leading software will struggle in the market without a compelling brand.

Let’s talk about branding for a moment.

Most guides cover basic SaaS topics like tracking content marketing metrics and reducing churn. But not much has actually gone through many B2B SaaS marketing strategies.

Hence, we’re going to talk about branding today and how it could boost SaaS sales.

“How to build a SaaS brand?” is the question we’ll attempt to answer.

But first, let’s go through the basics.

What is the Definition of Branding?

Simply put, SaaS branding is how your target market perceives you and your product. It’s the brand image that your company has in the marketplace.

Closer examination of branding reveals how management and team members view the organization. That includes its procedures, values, and beliefs.

Generally, before creating a website or other marketing tools, you need to define your brand first. The following principles could help:

• Your brand sets you apart from competitors that offer similar services.
• It is your distinctive stamp that identifies you as the creator of a service or product.
• Your company’s brand is a reflection of what customers perceive and think about it.

What is the Importance of Branding?

Today’s SaaS companies must figure out how to stay ahead of the competition. This holds true in an ever-increasingly competitive industry.

Over 10,000 private SaaS businesses exist today. An average startup spends over 90% of its first-year revenue on customer acquisition. To compete, SaaS companies must have a strong branding and content marketing strategy.

Marketing a SaaS product is different from marketing a typical software product. Since many SaaS apps are built by fresh market entrants, brand awareness is often a challenge.

How do you define a brand in your own mind? Sure, you can identify a brand’s characteristics (color scheme, logo, etc. ). But what exactly is it in Platonic or Socratic terms?

While you could gather hundreds of diverse viewpoints, the simplest way to think about it is,
“The feelings that consumers get when they interact with your brand define your brand.”

Feelings can be difficult to detect at first, so try a little self-experimentation. Consider five of your favorite brands that you use regularly. Now, as you contemplate them, ask yourself, “How do they make you feel?”

We’ve learned to anticipate it, haven’t we? And when one brand fails to provide, we go for another that will. It often has nothing to do with the product itself these days. We now usually associate them with anything the firm as a whole did or was tied to. It could be their political stances, environmental movements, executive decisions on a primarily customer-driven problems, and so on.

If nothing comes to mind right now, picture being told you can get a pair of shoes for free.

Awesome!

Then they show you ten pairs of shoes that you’ve never seen before. They all come with the same price, design quality, and functional value.

Your brand is an emotional experience in general. It all starts with a logo, a website, web pages, the product, and so on, but in the end, it’s all about feelings.

Now let’s go on…

Tips on How to Build a SaaS Brand

Branding is a difficult task. For graphic designers, it is about integrating complimentary fonts or colors in logos and websites. In some ways, this is true. But, more importantly, SaaS branding is all about your consumers, not your business. It’s all about how you want your service and company to be seen by customers. It entails behavioral marketing strategies.

If you don’t have a brand identity, ask yourself these three questions:

• What factors influence clients’ decisions to use your services?
• What distinguishes you from your competition in terms of capabilities?
• How distinctive is your offer, and how easy may it be duplicated?

Brands with “something” additional have an advantage over their competition. Take a look at Apple. T’s reputation would be tarnished if anyone could readily produce an iPhone. Similarly, if a competitor can readily replicate your service, branding would be difficult.

Customers notice your company’s brand when compared to other similar services. The distinction must be special and valuable. Being unique with a product that buyers don’t want has no brand value.

You must internalize and believe in your brand before you can begin marketing it. Your team should believe in the same things as you. Brand marketing is simple when the following are achieved:

• Everyone is enthusiastic about what the firm stands for
• Each understands the company’s aspirations,
• Everybody is committed to the company’s goals
• It’s time to take your brand to the market after you’ve defined it with your team.

Unveiling Your SaaS Brand

What is the best brand for a SaaS business? What is your preferred name? What colors should you use, and how should your logo be designed? The name, colors, and logo are irrelevant if you know what you stand for.

Simplicity is the best option most of the time. Choose one of the primary colors. Use a name that is well-known to the general public. There’s no need to be overly elaborate with your logo. If at all possible, use typography.

At the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) stage, there are a few basic rules for naming your product. Choose a brand name that is:

• simple to say and write down
• short enough to remember
• not already in use by competitors or businesses
• can be used to protect a.com domain
• is not insulting in other languages

Customers will first notice brand representations when your brand is unveiled. Logos, websites, and other marketing elements are included. Good branding relies heavily on the ability to maintain a consistent message. Allow for consistency in your marketing materials. When customers see your company’s color or emblem, they should immediately recognize it.

Consistency should be implemented wherever your company interacts with other businesses and customers.

Having an appealing logo or website may not be enough to attract new customers. As a general rule, customers buy value, not goods or services. When a consumer signs up for your service, he or she is effectively paying for the value that it will deliver.

Customers will buy your software if it lets them save documents on the cloud. The value is knowing their files are saved on the cloud and can be accessed from anywhere at any time.

To Connect With Your Customers, Use Emotions

In SaaS marketing, you have to quickly attract people’s attention. Branding that appeals to needs, ambitions, and emotions builds trust and brand loyalty.

Most educational content focus on the satisfaction gained from using a product. Don’t be afraid though to experiment to find what works best for you.

Ask yourself, what extra value can you offer your clients that will benefit them? Are you just another software that helps people organize meetings? Or, do you have anything more to offer? If your only competitive advantage is your name, good luck building a fantastic brand. To set your brand apart, you must go above and beyond.

Branding can be done by your product/service or by your current customers.

a) The Product

Your brand will easily grow if you can produce a useful app that isn’t already accessible. If you’re at a crowded market, find a way to stand out.

Some factors that could help you differentiate your firm includes:

Price strategy

Third-party app connectivity

Appealing UI design

Self-add add-ons

Your service should be consistent and suit your clients’ needs. Getting regular user feedback is crucial to figuring out what needs to be improved.

b) Customers / Service

How you interact with your customers or users has a big impact on how your organization is perceived. Remember how we stated your brand is how your customers perceive your business? Most customers get their initial impressions of a company’s brand from customer service. Poor customer service will make it difficult to build a positive brand.

Take good care of your customers and answer to their requests promptly. In an industry where customers have a variety of options, the consumer is king. Consider the brand value gained by treating customers properly, even if they don’t sign up or renew.

Choose Customer Testimonies That Are Effective

The best social proof and testimonials show real-life situations and problems you handled. You can acquire testimonials by asking clients things like:

What has changed for you since you began using our product?

In what ways does our product help you in accomplishing your goals?

How would you feel if you couldn’t use it anymore?

Instead of offering them a direct link, invite them to provide reviews on third-party websites. Users may find your website because they are dissatisfied with their current solution and looking for alternatives. This will help you with SEO and conversions.

The issue with testimonials is that they can appear manufactured and untrustworthy. In addition to the preceding questions, encourage your customers to express any pre-purchase doubts or concerns. This is a “reverse testimonial” technique.

Create a SaaS Brand Community

A one-to-many strategy to brand building is no longer effective. A community is a purpose-built platform that allows your customers to engage with your brand.

Brands have grown more personal, authentic, and adaptive, and in some cases, co-created with consumers. Community building strengthens human engagements.

Customer retention is the top business outcome associated with advanced community programs (77%), according to a recent study.

Furthermore, there will be less need to contact the helpdesk. Your self-help materials and your consumers help each other by sharing their experiences and recommendations.

Social Media Buzz

Marketers believe in using word of mouth to generate brand awareness. They regard it one of, if not the most effective and cost-efficient techniques.

One option is to use social media buzz. Social media dialogue will help you grow brand awareness on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Join communities, interact with prospects, share material and publish your own to initiate conversations.

Invest in an Influencer

Influencers are undeniably one of the hottest marketing concepts right now. This trend isn’t going anywhere soon. According to a Linqia report, nearly 40% of brands plan to boost their influencer marketing budgets in the future.

Define Your Brand, and then Introduce it to the Rest of the World

Your brand is ultimately determined by what you believe in, what you sell, and who your customers are… After knowing your competitive advantages and organizational features, you can begin your branding and SaaS marketing initiatives.

Developing a branding strategy based on your unique qualities can help you stand out from the swarm of other SaaS providers of service X.

Remember not to be viewed as “just another firm.” You also don’t want to be referred to as “no company.” You have to have a cause that you believe in. You have to be identified with something in order to succeed. You must establish yourself as a brand.

As a SaaS startup, focus on acquiring market recognition. This will enable you to maximize your business’s growth potential. Your potential customers will notice your brand when you establish a presence. Additionally, branding adds value to your business. It provides you with a great impression and improves the whole consumer experience.

Grow Your B2B SaaS Brand With Us

We’ve been helping SaaS businesses in growing, acquiring, and retaining users. We’ve helped new and seasoned SaaS platforms in redefining their marketing approach. It’s time to ramp up your SaaS business.

Let us speak today on how to build a SaaS brand. Our team of SaaS marketers is just one call away.